A Korean Style Vodka with Half the Alcohol

By Matt Goldstein

One of the largest selling spirits in the world, Korean soju, is now being made all over Japan by numerous distillers. TyKu, a premium sake brand has branched out into multiple spirits and their soju is available on American shelves. In Korea, most drink Chamisul by Jinro, and Korean BBQ is designed to match the spices of the food with the soju. Mixing the soju with Korean beer is also part of the culture, about a shot of soju dropped into a full beer. About half the alcohol as vodka but made with a grain base like most vodka’s, soju also has half the calories. Ty Ku boasts that their soju is half the calories and twice the taste of vodka but the tastes are very different as soju is a mellow, sweet flavor completely different from vodka.

Soju also known as Shochu in Japan is the #1 distilled spirit in the world. Tyku soju Its superiority made in small batches and cold filtration. TY KU Soju is crafted from the all natural ingredients with no additives, no preservatives and no sweeteners.

The Ty Ku Soju Tasting Notes:

Served neat at room temperature, the Ty Ku Soju is sweet, soft and very smooth. Slightly complex the Ty Ku Soju is good but not great but it does get better as you sip. We like the Ty Ku but recommend the Chamisul at less than half the price. The Chamisul is much more complex and less than half the price.

BARLEY – The highest quality in the world, handpicked in Oita, Japan.

SPRING WATER – Naturally filtered by the cedar forests of the Kyushu Mountains.

Korea’s Jinro and Chamisul Soju vodka esque spirit is starting to take off in the United States, so naturally, so are the Soju cocktails. We’va had a few Soju cocktails and believe it, we’ll be drinking them for a long time. Smoother an easy drinking spirit, Soju is a great mixer for any cocktail, try Chamisul Soju with any of the classic cocktail recipes listed below, from the Margarita, the Bloody Mary, Mojito and more, Soju can also be enjoyed neat, on the rocks and mixed with beer.

The Fastest Selling Spirit in the World

By Matt Goldstein

South Korea is the #2 country in alcohol consumption per capita in the world and the main drink is Soju, specifically Jinro Soju. With almost 12 billion bottles consumed annually, Soju is Korea’s main alcoholic beverage. Mainly distilled from rice, Soju can also be made with wheat, potato barley and tapioca. Comparable to vodka with much less alcohol, Soju is a clear liquor but sweet and drinkable without much burn. Many Koreans pour 1 shot of soju in every glass of beer, usually a light lager like Cass lager. As well, the food at many Korean BBQ’s is designed to complement the soju.

Jinro Soju is the #1 selling spirit in the world and the Jinro Chamisul Soju is a record selling and legendary soju, and considered the fastest selling spirit in the world after it was introduced. Chamisul Soju is the first pure and clean soju filtered four times with charcoals made from bamboo in Korea. This filtration method eliminates any harmful substances or impurities leaving only the clean and smooth tasting soju. While Jinro Soju is smooth, light and very drinkable, the Jinro Chamisul Original Soju is smooth, crisp, flavorful and complex. We recommend Chamisul Soju to be sipped straight and sip back and forth between a lager, rather than mixing the two, but both are must try. Koreans love to drink and soju is just what they do. According to my main man Joon Lee, when an actor or actress makes it onto a Jinro Soju poster, they’ve reached super stardom. I don’t know who the girl is in this poster bu she’s a super star in my eyes.

Ichiko: Japan’s Best Selling Sochu Spirit

By Matt Goldstein & Amy K. Haight

Soju is one of the best selling spirits in the world and the Korean Soju Jinro is actually the top selling spirit in the world. Ichiko Seirin Sochu is Japan’s take on the furiously popular Korean spirit. Much like vodka in scent and taste, Soju and Sochu actually have about 50% of the alcohol content of vodka, meaning it has much more drinkability. Distilled from carefully selected barley and pure spring water, Ichiko Seirin Sochu is filtered through bamboo charcoal and made from the most choice barley and malt. When compared to Jinro Soju, this is not even a contest. The Ichiko Seirin Sochu is in a class of its own having much more bite, complexity, flavor and depth. We highly recommend the Ichiko Seirin Sochu.

Ichiko Seirin Sochu Tasting Notes:

With a lemon cookie scent, good bite and sweet flavor, Ichiko Seiring is lightly grainy and complex. We love it!

Jinro Chamisul Soju: A Sweet and Smooth Clear Spirit Since 1925

By Matt Goldstein & Joon Lee

South Korea is the #2 country in alcohol consumption per capita in the world! South Koreans love to drink and their main drink is Soju, specifically Jinro Soju. With almost 12 billion bottles consumed annually, Soju is Korea’s main alcoholic beverage. Mainly distilled from rice, Soju can also be made with wheat, potato barley and tapioca. Comparable to vodka with much less alcohol, Soju is a clear liquor but sweet and drinkable without much burn.

Launched in 1924, Jinro Soju is now the worlds #1 selling spirit, outselling other leading brands like Stolichnaya, Bacardi and Johnny Walker. Jinro is not only #1 in the South Korean market, but has Jinro has changed the face of Asian drinking culture.

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Made from 60% grain, 20% sweet potato, 20% tapioca, (50% rice and 50% barley), Chamisul Soju by Jinro has a thin crisp vodka scent and a taste of a sweet watered down vodka. With an all around sweet sugar flavor, Jinro is very smooth with no bite. Jinro Soju is very drinkable with a slight burn and warmth. That’s the reason it sells so much. Jinro is a sweet and smooth watered down vodka that is very drinkable for the average drinkable. Lacking any serious bite, this spirit has mass appeal. Also, many in South Korea and throughout the world mix Soju into their beer to give the Asian style light lager/pilsner a bit of a kick.

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How Jinro Soju is Made:

Highest Quality Ingredients
Over the past 80 years, Jinro has developed and maintained relationships with Korea’s finest producers of Barley and Spring water(natural resources), ensuring a product of unparalleled quality and taste.Using the Gift of Nature
Jinro soju is natural bamboo charcoal Alkali Soju that is made from 3 year old bamboo of Mt. Jiri and Southern Coast of Korea. This bamboo is made into charcoal by continuous roasting at 1000C for 12 hours and natural cooling for another 12 hours. This charcoal is used to purify both alcohol and water which are the fundamental element of Soju. The alcohol and water is purified through the bamboo charcoal 4 times eliminating all the harmful element of alcohol and impurities while adding the rich essential mineral components such as Kalium. Jinro soju is the result of incorporating nature’s gift with Jinro’s undying devotion to produce high quality Soju.

Exclusive Cutting-Edge Technology
BCA (Bamboo Charcoal Agitation) method uses parasitic action, which is a process of generating water swirl under appropriate temperature and specific hydraulic pressure, thereby widening the contact surface between water and natural bamboo charcoal. This process enables efficient extraction of essential minerals such as Kalium Ion that is abundant within the natural bamboo charcoal.Marrying Method
Marrying method is an adaptation process used to manufacture high quality whisky. It is a method of applying continuous micro-action to all components of Soju that has gone through the BCA and natural bamboo charcoal purification process. This method creates much more stabilized and homogenized molecular structure of Soju components resulting in pure and clean flavor without any undesired after-taste.

Korea’s Main Alcoholic Beverage!

By Joon Lee & Matt Goldstein

With more than 3 billion bottles consumed annually, Soju is Korea’s main alcoholic beverage. Soju is very comparable to vodka but much sweeter because of the sugar additives. Mainly distilled from rice, Soju can also be made with wheat, potato barley and tapioca. High in alcohol content but cheap in price and very drinkable, Soju dates back to the 13th century. Most Soju’s in the U.S. have less alcohol content than those in Korea. In Korea, Soju averages around 35% ABV, but in America is reduced to about 20%.